Robert Irwin
The Second Coming
Adventures in the Orgasmotron: Wilhelm Reich and the Invention of Sex
By Christopher Turner
Fourth Estate 532pp £25
‘Small talk in prison had him as a con man who got rich people to sit in strange boxes that allowed them to make love better.’ That is not too far off the truth. But in the case of Wilhelm Reich it is difficult to decide where deceit ended and self-deception began. Let it serve as his epitaph. Reich was interned in Lewisburg Penitentiary in March 1957 and he died there on 3 November.
His early years had promised better things. Born in 1897, he was a veteran of the First World War who had gone on to become one of the stars of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society in the 1920s. There were some who thought that he might become Freud’s chosen
Sign Up to our newsletter
Receive free articles, highlights from the archive, news, details of prizes, and much more.@Lit_Review
Follow Literary Review on Twitter
Twitter Feed
Are iPhones ruining children's lives? A prominent American psychologist thinks so.
@tiffanyjenkins is not so sure:
Tiffany Jenkins - The Smartphone Pandemic
Tiffany Jenkins: The Smartphone Pandemic - The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an...
literaryreview.co.uk
India's 'festival of democracy', or general election, begins next month. Like every good festival, it looks likely to have its fair share of murders and arrests.
@OwenBennettJon probes the state of democracy in India:
Owen Bennett-Jones - New Delhi Confidential
Owen Bennett-Jones: New Delhi Confidential - The Incarcerations: BK-16 and the Search for Democracy in India by Alpa Shah
literaryreview.co.uk
Where is the world's newest narcostate and why is it thriving?
@AdamBrookesWord investigates Asia's meth mecca.
Adam Brookes - Meth Comes to Myanmar
Adam Brookes: Meth Comes to Myanmar - Narcotopia: In Search of the Asian Drug Cartel That Outwitted the CIA by Patrick Winn
literaryreview.co.uk